IT'S been a gruelling two years for top model Sophie Anderton. Not only has the former Gossard girl battled a crippling addiction to cocaine but Sophie, 28, has laid to rest a life-long struggle with the slimming disease anorexia nervosa.

Proof that the model really had reclaimed her health came last week when she completed her first London Marathon in five hours and 49 minutes. She admits that training for the 26-mile race has been a saving grace for her.

"I was in so much pain after finishing, I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy," she laughs. "But now I'm feeling extremely proud of myself.

"Having something like that to focus on has been so positive for me. I'm absolutely shattered, but it's been worth it.

"Two years ago I'd reached rock bottom and I desperately needed to find the right direction. The marathon has helped turn things around."

Sophie only decided to do the race in October last year.

And although she was already fairly fit as a result of taking up regular exercise two years ago after quitting drugs, she admits the training was tough.

She explains: "I was arrogant and thought it would be easy but I've had to train hard five or six times a week.

"I'd do an hour-and-a-half of cardiovascular exercise such as running in the morning followed by core strengthening exercises in the afternoon."

For Sophie the training was all the more difficult because of an injury to her right leg, caused by a car accident when she was 11.

She says: "I've got metal in my right leg from my big toe to my shin. There's a bolt in my toe and a plate in my ankle so I had to be careful when I trained.

"To strengthen my ankles I exercised on a wobble board - if I'd had a sprain it could have affected them for good."

And to give her enough energy to stick to this punishing schedule, Sophie has totally transformed her eating habits.

She continues: "Up until two years ago I'd followed the 'model diet', basically hardly eating. But since then I've been eating three meals a day and have learnt all about nutrition.

"I have an intolerance to wheat but you have to eat plenty of carbs for training so instead I stock up on vegetables and pulses such as couscous and tabbouleh, plus carb drinks. I also eat lots of fish, which is full of protein."

A typical day's food intake could be scrambled eggs, smoked salmon and rye bread for breakfast, sashimi [raw fish, Japanese-style] for lunch and something light for dinner like broccoli and spinach.

Sophie goes on: "The great thing about training is that I can actually get away with eating chocolate. Now there's no way that would have been the case in my pre-exercise days!"

And instead of the alcohol that was part and parcel of the party-girl lifestyle she was once so famous for, these days Sophie sticks to Diet Coke or water. In fact, it is Vittel mineral water which sponsored her to run the marathon.

She adds: "I've been going to bed by midnight and getting up at 7am. Sometimes I go out for dinner but I don't go mad socialising any more. I honestly feel like a brand-new Sophie."

All this exercise and healthy living has had a major effect on Sophie's body. She continues: "I've gone from a size 10 to a six and although I've been a size six before it was all because of an unhealthy lifestyle.

"The difference now is that although I've lost body fat, I've developed muscle."

Sophie first shot to fame in a prominent ad campaign modelling Gossard bras but she remained in the public eye thanks to her on/off relationship with ex-footballer Mark Bosnich and their ensuing cocaine addictions.

In 2004 she was a contestant on the fourth series of I'm A Celebrity, Get Me Out Of Here! several months after beginning her recovery.

She broke up with nightclub boss Mark Alexiou last year, the man she dubbed her "rock" for helping her beat her addictions, after a 17-month relationship.

At the time she said: "Mark is a wonderful man and he was really there for me.

"There wasn't any big drama. It was more to do with the fact that I needed to know I was in recovery on my own, that I could do it by myself.

"I didn't need to be mollycoddled and wrapped in cotton wool any more."

Today, she has a new lover - millionaire city trader Surhir Singh - and a body to die for. She admits she can't wait to turn 30, having put her rollercoaster youth behind her.

Sophie says: "I've felt unsteady throughout most of my 20s but now I feel confident and more self-assured.

"I was scared that my body had aged on the inside but after all this training I feel positive that my internal health has been restored."

She's also happier with the way she looks. "I love my new, toned shape. I've still got my 34B breasts. I think you lose them when you starve yourself.

"Doing that makes you look old. In fact I think I look younger now than I did at 22, purely because of my changed lifestyle. I work with 18-year-old models who drink and things and I feel fitter than they look."

Another reason Sophie was keen to get healthy in the long-term was because in the future she would like to be a mum. "Ideally I'd like to have three children one day, when I've met the right person," she says. Sophie ran the marathon in aid of the National Autistic Society which helps and supports people suffering from the condition and their families and carers.

She admits: "I didn't know much about autism before but now I realise that autistic children may be highly intelligent but aren't able to connect with the outside world.

"I know someone with an autistic son and now I can relate to him. I really want to help raise awareness."

Now the marathon is over, Sophie is off on holiday in southern Spain, but that doesn't mean she's planning a return to her old, unhealthy ways. She laughs: "I'll still go to the gym six times a week but I'll have Sunday off when I can demolish packets of cookies!

"You do need to give yourself a break every now and again.

"I am proud of what I have achieved and so are my friends and family as they know this has been a turning point for me physically and mentally.

"The marathon has been a huge focal-point for me as it marks the end of a long road of hard work and persistence. I feel truly happy for the first time."